Across the Barrier of Friendship
by sonycdrw
Summary: Love can turn even the smartest of people stupid. And when Hermione proves this during one Hogwarts morning, an unexpected emotion is uncovered. |Completed for now.|
1. At the Brink of Stupidity

Disclaimer: I love, like, adore, enjoy, am a fan of, obsessed with, incredibly amazed with, am delighted with and craving for more Harry Potter, but none of it belongs to me. It's all from the mind of J.K. Rowling. 

_"It is better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all."- Alfred Lord Tennyson, In Memoriam   
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**Across the Barrier of Friendship **

_Chapter One _  
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Hermione felt her eyes give a tug as she flipped the pages of an old, tattered-looking book. She glanced at the enchanted wall clock atop the fireplace, and squinted to see that it was already well past 5 o'clock in the morning. 

_Only two more pieces of homework to finish_, she thought, somewhat distraught. Hermione's legs were curled up and crossed over each other onto the seat of the chair, worn out from walking from the library to the common room. Her hand was also getting tired of writing and page-flipping, and her frizzy brown hair had strands sticking out at odd angles. She sat, eyelids heavy, and thoughtlessly smudged her fingers at the spiralling marks of wood that swam under the hardness of the table.

At that moment, she felt like she wanted to agree with Ron that she really had taken another unnecessary load of subjects for their fifth year. But she couldn't admit this; it would be simply unprofessional for an academic whiz like she was. And, she would certainly look irresponsible if she didn't finish. She had to keep her eyes open. It would only be short of two hours more until the rest of the school awakens, and her homework would be completed. 

She then picked up her quill and began to write on the piece of parchment that lay beside the huge library book, occasionally glancing at the carefully researched paragraphs that lay flatly before her. One of them read:

_The Celtic Warrior Queen Boadicea (AD ..30-63) had taken a great liking to Paracelsus the Great of Rome. Unfortunately, however, Paracelsus had found her to be "squalidly barbaric" and made a prodigious attempt to keep away from her at all times. But Druidess Boadicea was not a woman of relinquishment, as she proved through the numerous creations of the era's early attraction concoctions, now more commonly known as "love potions", which she had intentionally placed in one of Paracelsus' jewelled goblets._

_Although Paracelsus had finally, though artificially, fallen for Boadicea, the concept of these potions spread throughout the country, only ceasing to be as believable when Boadicea discovered Paracelsus to be affiliated with another woman in the event of their relationship. This brought about the Great Iceni-Roman war (AD 61-63), initiated by Queen Boadicea herself._

Hermione snorted lightly. "How could anyone get so desperate?" she asked herself in disbelief. This was the first alternate reaction she had experienced for hours—she had been having her mind carrying a load of things and a large chunk of missing sleep.

It was only a portion of her perseverance and the crackling fire of the Gryffindor common room that kept her awake. The crisp sound of the flames ringed around in her ears, reminding her to keep her eyes wide open and helping her fight back that incredibly strong wave of sleepiness that struggled to overcome her now and then. It was very fortunate that the fire crackled so loudly that morning---

"Wait, that isn't the fire!" she suddenly told herself, glancing up from her homework. She looked around carefully and saw a tuft of jet-black hair resting on the head of an armchair with its back to her. Slowly, she got up and stretched lightly, then walked to the spot where the armchair sat. She could recognize that mangled mess of hair anywhere.

"Harry?" she asked quietly. Getting no response, she walked around to face the boy. She smiled, amused, at the sight of a snoring Harry Potter with a green book in his hand. 

"Quidditch Through the Ages," she muttered, taking a look at the book's cover. _Typically Harry_, she thought to herself.

She decided to just sit there for a while—after all, a few minutes wouldn't hurt. She just found the sight so soothing at the moment. It was a real break to see something so innocent, driving her away from her pressured thoughts of homework for a while. 

And, it helped that this was Harry Potter. He was the best friend she never had, the boy she had read about even before she reached Hogwarts, and most importantly, the boy she had been admiring for years. Somehow, she felt so much courage in being the intelligent, school-oriented, hardworking Hermione; but she lost all of this courage when it came to letting Harry know how she really felt.

She stared at him quietly, like a little schoolgirl with a silly little crush. She studied the features that made up his charming face: the bangs that covered his uniquely-shaped scar; the thin mouth that hung slightly open with his light snores; and the eyelids that hid beneath them a pair of bright green eyes. He wasn't exceptionally handsome, but from the five years Hermione had spent with him, she knew more of what lay beneath. And looking at that restful, maturing face at the moment, Hermione couldn't help but marvel at how much he had grown through the years.

She had first seen him as that famous, eleven-year-old Boy-Who-Lived at that train ride going to Hogwarts. She seemed to have found him badly influenced by her other bestfriend Ron at that time, having had a knack for rule-breaking and getting into trouble. Hermione had the two of them to count on when she wanted to meet trouble along the way. Harry was nothing but a mere childish acquaintance at that time, only to become her best friend months later.

Of course, she could also remember how she had seen him a year later, when all of them were already twelve. It was only a birthday apart from their previous year, but it was in this year that Hermione began to see Harry in a different light. She just didn't know it yet, being rather overly preoccupied with academics and piles of books, but she felt it. It was not very hard for her to remember that distinct feeling at the pit of her ribs whenever she met Harry's eyes, or even just looked at him straight in the face. And, his admirable show of Godric's qualities upon opening the Chamber of Secrets just made Hermione like him even more.

Hermione smiled at the thought, and proceeded on.

Thirteen. Yes, she could remember that year well, too. It was the age that made the three of them turn away from the world of childhood and into the hustle and bustle of being--- what else, but teenagers. Hermione could not forget this year—it was when she had realized that even in the wizarding world existed the infallible concept of crushes, having finally noticed that she was already having one as well. And that event with the time-turner… it was Harry that had been there with her, the two attempting to save lives. And of course, she couldn't forget that memorable ride on Hagrid's hippogriff, Buckbeak.

_I've been staying with Parvati and Lavender too much_, she thought, still smiling. _Hermione, keep poor little Buckbeak away from your love-stricken fantasies! _

Oh, and who could forget their fourth year at Hogwarts? It was perhaps the busiest year they had had as of that moment. There was the Triwizard Tournament for one, and the Quidditch World Cup even before the schoolyear had begun. And those nasty encounters with deatheaters and the Dark Lord—it wasn't at all easy to forget about them. But, atop all this, Hermione still managed to squeeze in one of the most fussed about events that happened in the same year—their Yule Ball. She remembered how bad she felt when Harry proved to be oblivious to the fact of her existence as a girl. It was such a silly thing to do, fussing over some Asian girl and having a very giggly girl as his date. And Ron—he was there, but he only worsened the situation when he began that senseless fight with her.

The smile on Hermione's face slowly faded back into a line, and looked back at Harry's face. Through the years, she realized that she had actually seen through all his flaws, grasped to the thought of his undaunted courage, and had gone to appreciate how wonderful Harry really was. 

Hermione rested her cheek in one hand. _I love you, Harry_, she thought. _More than you'll ever know._

Unfortunately, as the green book Harry had been holding on to dropped with a little thud on the carpeted floor, the pair of green orbs in front of her slowly came into view as Harry suddenly opened his eyes.

"Wh—Hermione!" he said, startled at seeing her. "What are you doing here?"

Hermione blushed at being addressed so suddenly. "Oh—sorry—didn't see you wake up," she replied incoherently. "I was doing my homework and I accidentally spotted you-- out of your dormitory." She breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing herself make an acceptable excuse. "Which reminds me, why on earth are you sleeping here?"

Harry yawned. "Oh… I guess I fell asleep reading this. Ron was here too, but I guess he already went back to sleep. Agh, didn't even bother to wake me up." 

Hermione nodded absentmindedly.

They just stared at each other for a while, still groggy from not getting enough sleep. There was a peaceful silence between them, and not even a trace of awkwardness. It was the kind of silence one would feel with friends of age. But, somehow, Hermione couldn't stifle that other feeling that rested inside her. Her heart felt secure, but it seemed like it had been melting at the same time. 

"What about you?" Harry inquired. "Why've you been doing your homework at this hour?"

"Oh, fell asleep while doing all my assignments as well. Can you believe I wasn't even able to finish the one Professor Vector had given on tesseract roots?"

Harry rubbed his eyes and stretched his arms. "You work too hard, Hermione." He shook his head disbelievingly.

Hermione gave him a sarcastic grin. "So what's it to you?"

"Well, for one, I'm having a hard time distinguishing your eyes from those eyebags. They're both huge."

"Oh, shut up." 

"Well, it's true," Harry replied with a groggy smile. 

Another period of silence followed, with only the slow tick-tocking of the clock and the real cracks of the fire. Hermione gazed into the smiling pools of green that caught her in a wave of pure admiration, but it was then that the both of them began to feel awkward. Harry noticed he had been glancing at her blankly as well, and turned away to look at the fireplace instead. Hermione, noticing this, stood up almost immediately. She had almost forgotten about her homework!

"Erm, I need to finish my homework now, it'll be six in the morning soon."

Harry nodded rather awkwardly, and got up from the couch as well. "Oh, alright then. I'll see you at the Great Hall for breakfast." 

He was about to walk away when Hermione looked back instinctively. "Er, Harry," she said subconsciously. 

"Hmm?"

"I—I have to tell you something."

She couldn't keep it any longer. She was going to tell him. She just had to tell him. It was definitely now or never.

"What is it?" Harry asked.

Hermione blushed. "It's—it's…" She felt her mind search desperately for another excuse. "---It's… Ron." 

_Ron? What about Ron?_, she thought, panicking. _Think something up, quick!_

Harry's face looked even more confused. "Ron? What about Ron?"

"Erm…" She said the first sentence that entered her mind. "I like him?" _Oh, nice going, Hermione, you idiot!_, she scolded herself._ That was utterly stupid!_

Harry looked speechless at first, but his face soon broke into a mischievous smile. "Oh… so you do?"

"I mean---"

"You mean like like? Or just like?" There was a definite though discreet boost of energy that suddenly sprang up in his voice.

"Harry! I was—I was just joking---"

"Don't worry, Hermione, your secret's safe with me." He proceeded to walk quietly out of the common room towards his dormitory. "Oh, and Hermione?" he added quickly. His smile broadened. "I think Ron likes you too."

"Harry, wait!" Hermione called out. But it was too late—Harry had already gone out of view.

Hermione ruffled her hair in irritation, scolding herself repeatedly. "You idiot, you idiot, you idiot, you idiot! Why, Hermione, you wretched girl, did you tell him that? Why???" She looked down at her essay hopelessly. "Now you're never going to finish this. Never."

And she sat there, frustrated, not knowing that somewhere behind her, a red-headed figure had already waken up in one of the other armchairs, unable to stifle a goofy grin on his freckled face.

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A/N: How did it go? Please don't forget to review! ^_~ I'd really appreciate the reviews!


	2. Knotted Revelations

Disclaimer: I love, like, adore, enjoy, am a fan of, obsessed with, incredibly amazed with, am delighted with and craving for more Harry Potter, but none of it belongs to me. It's all from the mind of J.K. Rowling. 

_It is better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all._- Alfred Lord Tennyson, In Memoriam   
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**Across the Barrier of Friendship **

_Chapter Two_  
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"Mr. Weasley... Mr. Weasley!"

Professor McGonagall's sharp voice caught Ron in a slight jump about an inch off his seat. He turned his gaze to Professor McGonagall startingly, and gave her a quizzical look.

Her square-rimmed glasses seemed to reflect Ron's partially ruffled red hair as she looked at him impatiently. "I do not tolerate daydreaming in this class, Mr. Weasley. Would you be kind enough as to show me at least a little bit of interest in our subject?" 

Ron nodded somewhat apprehensively, and saw several of his classmates snickering at him. His ears turned beet red.

For some apparent reason, he couldn't concentrate on Transfiguration that morning. There just seemed to be more important things to think about than changing dirty old boots into croaky toads. His mind was flying back to that particular event in the Gryffindor common room a while ago, when Hermione--

"Ron!"

Ron received a painful nudge in the ribs. "Ow, what was that for?" 

Hermione, who was sitting right next to him, pointed her head at Professor McGonagall. She spoke in a furious whisper as she scolded him. "Can't you at least try to concentrate? You've been staring at the wall since the period started!"

"Oh-- uh, sorry," he mumbled, still caught up in his thoughts.

He had overheard Harry and Hermione talking to each other just this morning, having had fallen asleep in the Gryffindor common room the night before. And, somehow, he just could not forget about what Hermione told Harry. It was about him. And he knew his ears were most definitely clean at that time-- Hermione actually liked him.

He held the old, seemingly chewed-up boot onto his desk as he glanced at Hermione. I'm not that hopeless after all, he thought to himself. He realized that he actually felt something for her during their fourth year, when Hermione had Viktor Krum as her Yule Ball date. He knew he was jealous, but he couldn't tell her that. It was just too bad that Hermione became a bit naive in realizing how fond Ron was of her.

Ron glanced back at the boot and waved his wand absentmindedly. "Erm, Hermione," he said, somehow more confident than he had looked at her before. "What's the spell again?"

"Don't you ever listen?" she replied impatiently. "Oh, fine then-- _Instaritia Bufoticus. _You have to wave it in a horizontal loop. Need anything else?" She raised an eyebrow sarcastically at him.

Ron gave her a boyish grin. "That'll do, _Miss Granger_. Thank you very much."_ If she really likes me, she's pretty good at hiding it,_ he thought, feeling quite egoistic at the moment. He was about to do as Hermione had instructed with his wand when he heard a rather taunting voice diagonally behind him. The person who owned it cleared his throat loudly. 

A pink tinge appeared in Ron's cheeks as he shot his best friend an irritated look. "Shut up, Harry!" he whispered, figuring out that Harry had seen Hermione and Ron talk to each other. 

The words 'Instaritia Bufoticus' soon filled the room, along with simultaneous croaks from here and there. Many had succeeded in turning the boots into a warty green color, but the shape of boot remained. Neville Longbottom accidentally knocked his boot off the table and turned his table into a dead snake instead, much to his seatmate's and Professor McGonagall's dismay.

Ron waved his own wand and muttered the words carefully, directing the stick onto the leather boot on his desk. "_Instartia Bufoticus._" A puff of smoke erupted in an instant, and a faint _thump thump _bounced on his table. "Ugh-- what's that?" 

Hermione gave a tiny squeal as Ron's leather boot hopped off the table and towards her. Ron leaned to his right to catch it, but it exited off the table and left Ron to collapse on the person beside him.

"Hey--"

Hermione struggled to grip on her perfectly-transfigured toad for support, but her toad gave way and slid off the surface, making her fall off onto the hard, marbled floor. She opened her eyes slowly, and saw a collection of freckles within her view. Her hazel brown eyes were staring back at Ron's blue ones.

"Oh, uh, sorry," Ron mumbled, struggling to get off her. 

Hermione stood up immediately and dusted herself off. "You ought to be more careful, you know that," she told him awkwardly, still red from the unexpected fall. She glanced at Harry abruptly, checking to see his reaction. At first she thought there was a dismayed look on his face, but she proved herself wrong once she saw that a smile had broken into Harry's cheeks. 

She returned him a weak smile, but it contradicted her thoughts at the moment. _Why couldn't it have been Harry instead?, _she thought disappointedly, but took it back almost immediately. _Stop thinking about those things, Hermione!_

At the end of the class, Professor McGonagall acknowledged Hermione's work, again being the only fully-transfigured toad in the room.

It was a good thing Hermione had taken more subjects than either Ron or Harry, because it meant not having to put up with the awkwardness that sprang up between her and Ron that day. Also, Harry constantly tried to give Ron a chance to be with Hermione at all costs, obviously attempting to bring them together as a couple.

"You can't waste the chance, Hermione," he said at lunch, when Ron had gotten held up during an extended class with Professor Binns. "Who knows, you could graduate a few years from now without him knowing how much you really like him."

"Since when did you become Dr. Love, Harry?" Hermione teased. "Listen, I appreciate your thoughfulness and all, but I think I'll do fine on my own. I'm telling you, Harry, I don't have a crush on R--"

Ron dropped himself heavily across Harry at the Gryffindor table. "Remind me to give Binns a personal alarm clock this Christmas," he said, eyes droopy. "The git practically locked us up for half an hour more!"

"Now," Harry whispered, jerking an elbow at Hermione's shoulder. 

Hermione discreetly shot him an angry look and turned back to Ron. "I-- erm, I need to go ahead, I have some researching to do for Muggle Studies," she muttered smoothly, getting up from the table. Harry looked disappointed.

"But don't you know all about muggles already?" Ron asked.

"Yes, so what's wrong if I want to know more about them?"

Ron raised his eyebrows. "Nothing, I just thought you've been too hard on yourself lately, Hermione. You need a break--"

"I can tell when I need a break, thank you very much." Hermione replied hotly. She felt a little surge of anger and irritation go up inside her for some reason. If Ron hadn't been in the picture, she would probably be in Harry's mind right now. Ron, Ron, Ron! Why on earth did she have to mention Ron?

"Well, sorry! I didn't mean to get you all fussed up about it!" Ron said irritably. _Sometimes I start to doubt the fact that I like her_, he thought, annoyed with her temper. 

Hermione shook her head and rolled her eyes disbelievingly. She was about to walk away when Harry gripped her arm swiftly. Hermione felt a startled little spark shoot through her arm.

"Alright, listen, the two of you," he spoke solidly. "The three of us will head down to the common room now and talk."

"But---"

"No buts. If even one of you try not to go, I will personally make sure that the word regarding how much you like each other spreads around school by nighttime today." Harry said all of this a whisper to ensure that nobody had heard him. It was fortunate that Seamus had caused an explosion somewhere in the middle of the table.

Hermione and Ron both flinched, and looked angrily away from each other. Hermione wordlessly complained to Harry about this, eyebrows furrowed. She had never seen him so desperate! 

Harry merely smiled (which made Hermione secretly sigh) and nodded. "Trust me."

Harry motioned for them to stand before two adjacent armchairs once they reached the empty Gryffindor common room. "The two of you, sit. Not in that chair, Ron... the one beside Hermione. Now."

The two of them plopped themselves unwillingly onto the armchairs, feeling uncomfortable as ever.

"Okay, I'll make this quick. Hermione, Ron likes you. And don't even try to deny it." He shot a threatening look at Ron, who sank back into his chair and blushed. "And you-- Hermione--"

"Hermione likes me. Yes, I know. I overheard you two talking this morning--"

"You _what??_"

"Okay, calm down," Harry said quickly. "I will not have any fighting in this room."

Ron pursed his lips to one side angrily. "Fine then, we'll fight outside," he said sarcastically.

Harry blew away the bangs on his forehead. "Will you just listen? Now, you two like each other as much as your brother likes Penelope Clearwater." Ron looked disgusted, but he was blushing furiously. "I will not let this hour pass without the two of you understanding this."

There was a brief silence, until Hermione began to speak. "Harry..." she said, head turned away from him. "I don't like him that way, okay?" Her voice was unstable, and it looked like she was about to cry.

Ron's stomach lept horribly, but he replied confidently, nonetheless. "There, cleared. I like her, she doesn't like me. Why make a big deal out of it? I have an unfinished plate of mashed potatoes and chicken out there. Case closed, goodbye." And he stood up, rushed out to the entrance where the Fat Lady's portrait hung outside, and scuttled away.

Harry sat down the now empty chair where Ron had been. "_Why_ did you have to say that?"

Hermione looked at him, teary-eyed. "Why do you have to make such a big deal out of this?" she asked, still partly angry, and got up from the chair she had been sitting in.

She was just tired-- irritated-- angry even. Why did she have to tell him that? Why did Ron have to act so darn frustrating? Why did the one she truly like have to force her to someone else? It hurt to think about it-- that Harry couldn't even see her for what she wanted him to--

"You know why I'm making such a fuss over this?" Harry called out to her as she made her way towards the opposite direction. "It's because-- I like you, alright? There, satisfied?" And he strode off, walking disappointedly to the door leading to the boys' dormitory. 

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A/N: Thanks to the reviewers! I've decided to just call this fic completed for now. A huge chunk of writer's block has recently fallen on my head, and I think it would be best to end here for now. Thanks for all those who read! 

And a huge THANK YOU to everyone who also reviewed! ^_~

Eruwen: Really? Hey, at least that just shows that I am capable of writing humor fics! *phew!* hehe...Thanks!

Sidekickwannabe: Same here for the pairings! And I've also begun to warm up to the Ron/Hermione ones. :) Thank you for reviewing!

Barbara: I'm really glad you liked it! Thanks! And sure, there's even a part 3! (Chapter 3, actually ^_~)

blithely-imagine: Interesting nick! ;) I agree with the crush thought. I am currently crush-less, but I can still relate! Thanks a whole lot!

Anonymous reviewer: Am still undecided on that ^_^ Thanks for reviewing!

starburst25589: Thanks, starburst25589! On the H/H, I'm still going to think about it! :)

tomzgurl77: Hi tomzgurl! I'd be glad to be in your shoes right now if your nick is true to its word! :) Glad you liked the cliffie! Thanks! * I'm so sorry I had to re-place your review when this got deleted! Thanks for the review, nonetheless! ^_^

Darcel: Thanks for the suggestion! I think you're the first one to agree on having Ron with Hermione. ^_^ 

demetre: Thank you very much! Don't worry, I'll try posting chapters as quickly as possible! ^_^

Lana: I also want an H/R pairing in the books instead of R/H... but I guess J.K. has it all planned out. Oh well.... Thanks for reviewing, Lana! :)

Snow Bunny: Harry/ Hermione seems to be the dominant pairing here! ^_~ Thanks!

Cyle: I'll update as quickly as possible, Cyle! (Love your e-mail add if black means Sirius :p)

=P: Thanks a whole lot!! :p ^_^

Sarah: I like the idea of them fighting over her. Poor Hermione! ^_^ Thanks for reviewing!

Brigitte: I think so too. I've got something in mind for the ending, but I'm still depending on your opinions for now. Thanks! ^_~

jeswin: Yup, and it'll be a nasty heartbreak for Ron when that happens.... Thanks! ^_^

Tabitha: I will, I promise! Thank you very much! :)

Alexa Daiell Black: Thanks! I'll be posting the other chapters a.s.a.p! :)

A True Harry Potter and Hermione Potter Fan: Thanks for reviewing and for the nice comments! I really appreciated that. ^_^ It would be an honor of J.K. Rowling reviewed, too! Hehe.. Thanks! ^_~

kittydopter: Muchos Gracias! Thanks a lot! :)

wicked-women: Hehe..sorry about the evil cliffie... thanks for reviewing! ^_^

Taryn: Thanks a whole entire lot! ^_~ I think H/H will do, but there are also a lot of R/H people out there.. I promise I'll try updating soon! It's a good thing summer's just a week away where we live... ^_^

ponder: Whee.. another H/H person! ^_^ Thanks!

coconut-ice agent h/h: I'm sorry your review was deleted along with the old chap 3! I'll try re-posting it if you want! Thanks for reviewing! :) 

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! Did I mention thank you? ^_^ Don't forget to please, please review! Thanks a whole lot!!! n_n :)


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